Post by Creepette on Feb 17, 2009 20:05:57 GMT -5
This is a original story I started to write a year ago. I only managed to get the first chapter done... but I am planning on starting the second chapter fairly soon.
- - -
Headline -"One man must fight against the law to prove his innocence..."
- - -
"Morris you lazy bum, where the hell have you been!?" Mr. Lauder - the convenience store owner exclaimed as he greeted Tom Morris at the door. Tom gave Lauder a little smile and replied. "Oh I've been... around." Which was half true. Tom has been laying around the house, madly depressed for the past two weeks.
"Well it's good to have you back!" Lauder exclaimed. Tom gave him a nod. And walked to the back of the store, where the toiletries items were. He grabbed shampoo, conditioner, and under-arm deodorant.
He brought the three bottles up to the counter. As Lauder started to press buttons on the counter and like always, with a smile. Tom could see packs of Kool cigarettes behind him. "And I'd like three packs of Kool please." Tom requested. Lauder's face grew puzzled. "But Morris, I thought you quit smoking." He asked while turning around, and grabbing the three packs. Morris looked down at the counter. "I did... for Ellen..."
Lauder looked shocked as he placed the packs in the brown paper bag.
"What happened!?" He asked Tom. Tom dug out his wallet and took a ten dollar bill out. "The bitch is gone, no need to worry about her anymore."
Tom tossed the money on the counter and grabbed the brown bag with a firm grip. He turned around and walked for the door, without saying goodbye. "Don't you want your change!?" Lauder yelled after him. Tom raised his left hand. "No you keep it." The little bell above the door rang as Tom walked through it.
The skies never looked more beautiful. Not a single cloud to be seen, and the soft breeze felt wonderful, against mid-summer Georgia hot air. (But that didn't stop Tom from wearing his favorite pair of faded jeans and light gray plaid shirt). He shoved his left hand in the paper bag, he was dying for a cigarette. When he felt one of the packs between his fingers he brought it out, and opened it with his teeth. The thought of a lighter never hit him until now. He bent his head back and let out a loud sigh.
He didn't want to face Lauder twice in one day, but he didn't have a choice. He turned around and headed down the sidewalk back to the little convenience store.
As he walked past a short ally, he heard a soft whimper. He stopped walking, and waited for another. Instead he heard a girl scream for a split second before her mouth was covered. Tom rushed down the short ally and looked to his left. Down a second, longer ally he saw a man dressed fully in black slamming a young teenage girl into the brick wall. Tom dropped the paper bag and pack of smokes and rushed to the girl's aid.
"Hey!" He yelled. The man turned around and looked at Tom. Tom couldn't see his entire face, because he had a raccoon-like mask around his eyes.
The girl looked at Tom as well and hope shined in her eyes.
The man panicked and pulled out a six inch blade that was tucked in-between his underwear, and back of his black jeans. Tom was just ten feet away when he tripped on a small stack of center-blocks. He feel on his chest and lost all of the air in his lungs.
The man raised the knife above his head, and the girl screamed as loud as she could, hoping she could stop him, she tried to scratch his eyes, but was only able to pull the left side of his turtle-neck sweater down. A rather large scar was exposed behind the black sweater, on the man's neck, the man thrust the knife into her heart and she stopped screaming. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and took off. He ran past Tom who tried to grab him, but the man was just too fast.
Tom looked back at the girl who was barely holding herself up. He found the strength to push himself up, and ran toward the girl. Just in time to catch her from falling to the ground.
The young girl's blue eyes looked into Tom's brown eyes, she tried to say something, but there was too much blood in her lungs. Instead she coughed the blood onto Tom's face.
Her harsh breathing came to a sudden stop, and she passed away in Tom's arms. Tom gently placed her down onto the pavement. Just then there was another scream to his left. He saw a elder woman, in a donut shop uniform, screaming at the site of them and ran around to get help. Luckily for her there were two cops in the donut shop, less than thirty feet away. When she reached them she told them she saw a 30-something man stab the young girl.
The cops threw on their hats and ran out the door, toward the ally...
The cops ran around the corner to the back of the store, and made a sharp left. They stopped at the sight of a 30ish man standing above a young girl's body... blood was smeared all over his shirt, and jeans, and was dripping from his hands. The cops, stunned, looked at the girl to Tom. Eyes popping out of their head. Mouths wide opened. Bodies frozen.
Tom looked up at them, tears rolling down his cheeks.
The girl ran up from behind the two cops and pointed at Tom with a furious look on her face. "That's the guy! He stabbed the girl! I saw everything!"
The cops closed their mouths, and placed their hands on their nightsticks.
Tom's eyes widen then, and he raised his hands about to tell them he didn't do it, but only managed to get a few whimpers out before the cops were on top of him, beating him down to the ground beside the dead girl.
One of the cops stopped and put his nightstick back in its holster. Then he pulled out his handcuffs, and jammed his right knee into Tom's upper back.
"You have the right to remain silent..." The cop started to say while pulling Tom's hands behind his back. The other cop grew tired of swinging at Tom, and stood back panting.
"Anything you say can, and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney, and to have an attorney present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you at government expense." The cop finished saying. He placed both hands in cuffs, and pushed himself up from Tom.
The second cop put his nightstick in its holster, and helped the first cop pick Tom off from the pavement.
Tom was hurting everywhere. The first two strikes from the nightsticks hit him in the jaw, and left ribs.
Every time he walked on his left leg, their was a sharp pain in his ribs. He stopped walking on his left leg, and hopped on his right. That felt better until the cop holding onto his right arm hit Tom in the right ribcage with his fist. "Don't lag!" He shouted in Tom's ears. Tom walked on both legs again as best he could. He could see the squad car now, it was parked in front of the donut shop.
The donut shop employee was walking behind them.
"You're gonna give this man the death sentence now aren't cha?" She asked. The cops didn't answer her.
When they reached the squad car, the first cop opened the door, and the second cop threw Tom in the back seat.
The first cop slammed the door shut, and opened the passenger side door. He slid in the shotgun seat, and picked up the little walkie-talkie, connected to the radio.
"HQ, this is squad car number 14, we have a 11-46 here, in the back allies of the donut shop. On W. Liberty Street."
There was a short pause. "10-4, the coroner will be there within ten minutes."
"10-4." The cop replied. He placed the walkie talkie down and relaxed in his seat. Tom laid down in the backseat, and tried to stretch his body out to relieve the pain in his ribs.
The second cop told the donut shop employee to wait inside for the detective to ask her questions. She gave one last nasty look in Tom's direction. "I hope he rots in the chair, and then hell!" She exclaimed before rushing to the front door.
A crowd started to surround the death scene. The cop tried to assure all of them everything was under control.
The coroner--Bruce Evans arrived just twenty seconds under ten minutes. He stepped out of the van, and let out a sigh, while bringing out a green notebook from his front coat pocket, and a number 2 pencil.
The second cop walked up to him and greeted him with a phony smile. "Hi there, I'm Deputy Richard-" He started to say, but Bruce cut him off.
"Direct me to the body."
Richard looked a little embarrassed. "It's down that ally." He pointed to his right. Bruce started to walk in that direction.
When he made the sharp turn, he saw the dead girl. Her thin body was half-way down the long ally, a small puddle of blood was slowly starting to spread around her chest. He walked over to her, and kneel down beside her. The only visible part of the knife was the black handle. The whole blade was thrust into her heart.
Just then the detective--Ross Wilkins arrived in a black Beemer. He was wearing a brand new brown tux, with a red tie, and a tanish cowboy hat.
He stepped out of the car, and put his black Aviators on.
Ross walked over to the squad car he parked behind. The officer opened his car door, and rushed out of his seat, almost losing his footing.
"Tell me all that you know." Ross told the officer, while pulling out a black pocketbook, and a black ball point pen.
"Well... me and Richard were sitting down at the donut shop, enjoying our free coffee... When Nancy, the donut employee went on her hourly smoke break. A few minutes later she ran in the shop through the front door, she looked scared to death. She had said a 30ish man had just stabbed a young blonde girl in the ally behind the shop. That was enough to get me and Rich going.
We ran out where she told us the man was, and surely enough there the two of them were. He was standing above her body drenched in her blood... and... well when me and Rich calmly walked up to him not wanting a fight, he tried to resist us. But we caught the bastard using the only method we could... and well... he isn't a pretty site."
The officer stood aside, and Ross could see the man laying on his left side in the backseat.
He looked awful, blood and bruises every where on his body. His eyes were closed, and the right one was swelling up. "What in God's name happened to him?" Ross asked the cop.
"Well..." The cop started to say. "He resisted us at first, like I said, we had no choice but to... hit him a few times..."
"I never did catch your name." Ross replied with.
"David Strait." The cop said with a shaky voice.
Ross turned around to face David, and was not surprised that there were no bruises or scratches on him.
"And your partner?" He asked.
"Richard Dill."
Ross wrote their names down.
"I'll see to it that you're badges are suspended."
The color in David's face flushed just then, before he could reply Ross walked past him into the donut shop.
When he entered, a elder woman with anger written all over her face, walked up to him. "Well is he going to the chair or not?" She barked at him.
Hello to you too, you fat ugly bitch. Ross thought. That reply put a smile on his face.
"We wouldn't have a answer for that for a few months, at least... I was hoping I could ask you a few questions." He told her.
She folded her plump arms to her sagging chest. "Shoot."
"Have a seat please, this may take a while." He said pointing to the chair beside her.
Bruce could quickly identify the girl. She was Amy Stewart, the Sheriff's daughter. He brought out a white handkerchief and placed it over his mouth. Richard walked up behind him. "Yeah it's a horrible thing to see such a cutie pie in this condition, isn't it?" Bruce stood up and wrote a few quick notes. "Where is Sheriff Stewart?" He asked.
"Oh he went out of town for a few days. On a short vacation I reckon." Bruce turned around to face Richard. "Then who is in charge?"
Richard shrugged.
Bruce wrote a few more notes. "Get a hold of him anyway you can." He told Richard, while kneeling back down beside the girl. "Ah yeah sure... but why do you want him so badly anyhow...?"
"Because the murder victim in this case is Amy Stewart."
It took a while for Richard to put the two-and-two together. When he did his eyes widen. "I didn't even recogi-"
"Just get him on the phone!"
Richard looked stunned at the aggressive attitude Bruce was growing. But he did as he was told, and ran to his squad car. He ran past the rest of the investigation team, and medics who were making their way to the Amy's body.
"First off please tell me your name." Ross said to Nancy
"Nancy H. Grady."
"And where were you during the scene of the crime?"
"I was taking my usual cigarette break, in the back of the shop."
"How did you know the young girl was in trouble?"
"I heard her scream bloody murder!"
"What did you do when you heard the scream?"
"I almost choked on my dang cigarette first... Then I rushed around the corner... when I looked to my right... I saw them..."
"What exactly did you see?"
"That God-awful man was standing over her body, smiling like the devil. Bloody hand prints were on his shirt... and there was a knife in the poor girl's chest."
"And then what happened?"
"I remembered about David and Richard in the shop, and rushed to them."
"Is there anything else you would like to add Nancy?"
"Yes... please don't let that man get away!"
Ross closed his notebook and stood up from the table. "Thank you for your time." He tilted his hat in her direction and gave her a smile. She stuck her nose up in the air and looked out the window to her right. Ross turned around and walked out of the shop. He stood at the entrance for a brief moment, something didn't feel right to him. He looked over at the suspect in the back of the squad car in front of him. He walked toward the car, when he reached it he opened the back door. And kneel down at the door. He looked at Tom for a few moments before he politely asked him questions.
"What were your motives?"
Tom was silent.
"What is your name?"
Tom was silent again.
Ross was about to repeat himself when Tom finally spoke.
"I'm not the man you're looking for."
Ross tilted his head to the side.
"Then who is son? You're the only man the witness described."
Tom was silent again.
Ross gave up trying to get information out of him. He shut the door and wiped his forehead. It was too hot out to be wearing a suit, but Ross always had to look his best.
David was leaning up against the hood of the car, looking at Ross with a nasty expression.
"I want you to get this man proper health care.' Ross told David as he walked by him, heading toward the crime scene.
He stepped under the yellow Police - DO NOT CROSS tape and walked down the ally. There were small puddles of blood on the ground, more than fifteen feet away from the girl's body. Ross tilted his hat back and kneel down beside it. There was a little white object in the biggest puddle.
He didn't have any gloves on him, so he whistled to the nearest CSI man. The young blonde man rushed over to Wilkins. "Get me a pair of gloves, and a plastic bag." Wilkins demanded. The CSI man nodded and ran toward the CSI van.
He returned to Ross less than sixty seconds later with both requested items in hand. He handed them to Ross, and Ross slid the gloves on.
He picked up the white object and slid his sunglasses down to the end of his nose.
"Well I'll be damned!" He exclaimed. The CSI guy stood behind him and examined the white object.
"What is it hoss?" He asked Ross.
"It's a Goddamn tooth, that's what it is!" He smiled back at the CSI guy. "Open that bag up." The CSI guy opened the plastic bag, and Ross slid the tooth in. "Save that there tooth for the labs, while I see which one of them lost it."
The CSI guy nodded again and placed the bag tightly in his front jacket pocket.
Ross pushed himself up from the pavement, and continued walking toward the girl.
The coroner had just asked the paramedics to get their gurney, and body bag when Ross reached them.
He kneel down beside the coroner. "This may sound like a weird question for me to ask. But could you please expose the girl's teeth to me?" He asked Bruce.
Bruce didn't reply. He stuck his finger on the right side of the girl's mouth. All teeth were intact.
He gently tilted her head toward them, and exposed the left side of her mouth. All thirty-two teeth were intact.
"Do you know who she is?" Ross asked Bruce.
"Yeah.... it's the Sheriff's daughter."
Ross stood up. Down the ally way in front of him he could see two CSI members investigating a brown paper bag, and a pack of smokes. He assumed they belonged to the suspect.
What were his motives? He asked himself over and over again, but couldn't answer himself.
He turned back around and headed down the ally where he entered.
He stepped under the tape again, and almost ran into a cop who was running around the corner. Ross assumed it was Richard Dill.
"I got him! I got him!" He kept shouting over, and over again.
Ross watched as he ran down the ally to Bruce. After saying a few things to the coroner, the two of them started to jog in Ross' direction.
Ross quickly turned around and walked toward the squad car again. The suspect was sitting on the hood of the car now, with a paramedic standing in front of him.
"Now I want you to try and relax, as I examined you." The medic said to Tom as he unbuttoned his bloody plaid shirt.
Ross saw many bruises growing dark on his ribcage and chest. The medic placed a stethoscope on Tom's chest.
After listening for a few seconds he slid it down to Tom's left ribcage.
After listening to that for a few seconds he took off the stethoscope and felt his ribcage. That made Tom breath harder, and whined softly in pain.
"It feels as if a few of your ribs have been broken..." The medic said.
Ross couldn't imagine the pain Tom was in at the moment.
"It'll take at least 6-8 weeks for them to fully recover." The medic continued.
The medic noticed Ross standing behind him. "Could you please help me carry this man to the ambulance. I feel it would be best to treat him at the Coastal State Prison treatment center."
Ross nodded. He carefully took Tom's right arm and placed it around his own neck, as the medic did with Tom's left arm.
Together they guided him to the ambulance.
Tom's trial will begin shortly after he is healed, and transfered to his own cell.
- - -
Headline -"One man must fight against the law to prove his innocence..."
- - -
"Morris you lazy bum, where the hell have you been!?" Mr. Lauder - the convenience store owner exclaimed as he greeted Tom Morris at the door. Tom gave Lauder a little smile and replied. "Oh I've been... around." Which was half true. Tom has been laying around the house, madly depressed for the past two weeks.
"Well it's good to have you back!" Lauder exclaimed. Tom gave him a nod. And walked to the back of the store, where the toiletries items were. He grabbed shampoo, conditioner, and under-arm deodorant.
He brought the three bottles up to the counter. As Lauder started to press buttons on the counter and like always, with a smile. Tom could see packs of Kool cigarettes behind him. "And I'd like three packs of Kool please." Tom requested. Lauder's face grew puzzled. "But Morris, I thought you quit smoking." He asked while turning around, and grabbing the three packs. Morris looked down at the counter. "I did... for Ellen..."
Lauder looked shocked as he placed the packs in the brown paper bag.
"What happened!?" He asked Tom. Tom dug out his wallet and took a ten dollar bill out. "The bitch is gone, no need to worry about her anymore."
Tom tossed the money on the counter and grabbed the brown bag with a firm grip. He turned around and walked for the door, without saying goodbye. "Don't you want your change!?" Lauder yelled after him. Tom raised his left hand. "No you keep it." The little bell above the door rang as Tom walked through it.
The skies never looked more beautiful. Not a single cloud to be seen, and the soft breeze felt wonderful, against mid-summer Georgia hot air. (But that didn't stop Tom from wearing his favorite pair of faded jeans and light gray plaid shirt). He shoved his left hand in the paper bag, he was dying for a cigarette. When he felt one of the packs between his fingers he brought it out, and opened it with his teeth. The thought of a lighter never hit him until now. He bent his head back and let out a loud sigh.
He didn't want to face Lauder twice in one day, but he didn't have a choice. He turned around and headed down the sidewalk back to the little convenience store.
As he walked past a short ally, he heard a soft whimper. He stopped walking, and waited for another. Instead he heard a girl scream for a split second before her mouth was covered. Tom rushed down the short ally and looked to his left. Down a second, longer ally he saw a man dressed fully in black slamming a young teenage girl into the brick wall. Tom dropped the paper bag and pack of smokes and rushed to the girl's aid.
"Hey!" He yelled. The man turned around and looked at Tom. Tom couldn't see his entire face, because he had a raccoon-like mask around his eyes.
The girl looked at Tom as well and hope shined in her eyes.
The man panicked and pulled out a six inch blade that was tucked in-between his underwear, and back of his black jeans. Tom was just ten feet away when he tripped on a small stack of center-blocks. He feel on his chest and lost all of the air in his lungs.
The man raised the knife above his head, and the girl screamed as loud as she could, hoping she could stop him, she tried to scratch his eyes, but was only able to pull the left side of his turtle-neck sweater down. A rather large scar was exposed behind the black sweater, on the man's neck, the man thrust the knife into her heart and she stopped screaming. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and took off. He ran past Tom who tried to grab him, but the man was just too fast.
Tom looked back at the girl who was barely holding herself up. He found the strength to push himself up, and ran toward the girl. Just in time to catch her from falling to the ground.
The young girl's blue eyes looked into Tom's brown eyes, she tried to say something, but there was too much blood in her lungs. Instead she coughed the blood onto Tom's face.
Her harsh breathing came to a sudden stop, and she passed away in Tom's arms. Tom gently placed her down onto the pavement. Just then there was another scream to his left. He saw a elder woman, in a donut shop uniform, screaming at the site of them and ran around to get help. Luckily for her there were two cops in the donut shop, less than thirty feet away. When she reached them she told them she saw a 30-something man stab the young girl.
The cops threw on their hats and ran out the door, toward the ally...
The cops ran around the corner to the back of the store, and made a sharp left. They stopped at the sight of a 30ish man standing above a young girl's body... blood was smeared all over his shirt, and jeans, and was dripping from his hands. The cops, stunned, looked at the girl to Tom. Eyes popping out of their head. Mouths wide opened. Bodies frozen.
Tom looked up at them, tears rolling down his cheeks.
The girl ran up from behind the two cops and pointed at Tom with a furious look on her face. "That's the guy! He stabbed the girl! I saw everything!"
The cops closed their mouths, and placed their hands on their nightsticks.
Tom's eyes widen then, and he raised his hands about to tell them he didn't do it, but only managed to get a few whimpers out before the cops were on top of him, beating him down to the ground beside the dead girl.
One of the cops stopped and put his nightstick back in its holster. Then he pulled out his handcuffs, and jammed his right knee into Tom's upper back.
"You have the right to remain silent..." The cop started to say while pulling Tom's hands behind his back. The other cop grew tired of swinging at Tom, and stood back panting.
"Anything you say can, and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney, and to have an attorney present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you at government expense." The cop finished saying. He placed both hands in cuffs, and pushed himself up from Tom.
The second cop put his nightstick in its holster, and helped the first cop pick Tom off from the pavement.
Tom was hurting everywhere. The first two strikes from the nightsticks hit him in the jaw, and left ribs.
Every time he walked on his left leg, their was a sharp pain in his ribs. He stopped walking on his left leg, and hopped on his right. That felt better until the cop holding onto his right arm hit Tom in the right ribcage with his fist. "Don't lag!" He shouted in Tom's ears. Tom walked on both legs again as best he could. He could see the squad car now, it was parked in front of the donut shop.
The donut shop employee was walking behind them.
"You're gonna give this man the death sentence now aren't cha?" She asked. The cops didn't answer her.
When they reached the squad car, the first cop opened the door, and the second cop threw Tom in the back seat.
The first cop slammed the door shut, and opened the passenger side door. He slid in the shotgun seat, and picked up the little walkie-talkie, connected to the radio.
"HQ, this is squad car number 14, we have a 11-46 here, in the back allies of the donut shop. On W. Liberty Street."
There was a short pause. "10-4, the coroner will be there within ten minutes."
"10-4." The cop replied. He placed the walkie talkie down and relaxed in his seat. Tom laid down in the backseat, and tried to stretch his body out to relieve the pain in his ribs.
The second cop told the donut shop employee to wait inside for the detective to ask her questions. She gave one last nasty look in Tom's direction. "I hope he rots in the chair, and then hell!" She exclaimed before rushing to the front door.
A crowd started to surround the death scene. The cop tried to assure all of them everything was under control.
The coroner--Bruce Evans arrived just twenty seconds under ten minutes. He stepped out of the van, and let out a sigh, while bringing out a green notebook from his front coat pocket, and a number 2 pencil.
The second cop walked up to him and greeted him with a phony smile. "Hi there, I'm Deputy Richard-" He started to say, but Bruce cut him off.
"Direct me to the body."
Richard looked a little embarrassed. "It's down that ally." He pointed to his right. Bruce started to walk in that direction.
When he made the sharp turn, he saw the dead girl. Her thin body was half-way down the long ally, a small puddle of blood was slowly starting to spread around her chest. He walked over to her, and kneel down beside her. The only visible part of the knife was the black handle. The whole blade was thrust into her heart.
Just then the detective--Ross Wilkins arrived in a black Beemer. He was wearing a brand new brown tux, with a red tie, and a tanish cowboy hat.
He stepped out of the car, and put his black Aviators on.
Ross walked over to the squad car he parked behind. The officer opened his car door, and rushed out of his seat, almost losing his footing.
"Tell me all that you know." Ross told the officer, while pulling out a black pocketbook, and a black ball point pen.
"Well... me and Richard were sitting down at the donut shop, enjoying our free coffee... When Nancy, the donut employee went on her hourly smoke break. A few minutes later she ran in the shop through the front door, she looked scared to death. She had said a 30ish man had just stabbed a young blonde girl in the ally behind the shop. That was enough to get me and Rich going.
We ran out where she told us the man was, and surely enough there the two of them were. He was standing above her body drenched in her blood... and... well when me and Rich calmly walked up to him not wanting a fight, he tried to resist us. But we caught the bastard using the only method we could... and well... he isn't a pretty site."
The officer stood aside, and Ross could see the man laying on his left side in the backseat.
He looked awful, blood and bruises every where on his body. His eyes were closed, and the right one was swelling up. "What in God's name happened to him?" Ross asked the cop.
"Well..." The cop started to say. "He resisted us at first, like I said, we had no choice but to... hit him a few times..."
"I never did catch your name." Ross replied with.
"David Strait." The cop said with a shaky voice.
Ross turned around to face David, and was not surprised that there were no bruises or scratches on him.
"And your partner?" He asked.
"Richard Dill."
Ross wrote their names down.
"I'll see to it that you're badges are suspended."
The color in David's face flushed just then, before he could reply Ross walked past him into the donut shop.
When he entered, a elder woman with anger written all over her face, walked up to him. "Well is he going to the chair or not?" She barked at him.
Hello to you too, you fat ugly bitch. Ross thought. That reply put a smile on his face.
"We wouldn't have a answer for that for a few months, at least... I was hoping I could ask you a few questions." He told her.
She folded her plump arms to her sagging chest. "Shoot."
"Have a seat please, this may take a while." He said pointing to the chair beside her.
Bruce could quickly identify the girl. She was Amy Stewart, the Sheriff's daughter. He brought out a white handkerchief and placed it over his mouth. Richard walked up behind him. "Yeah it's a horrible thing to see such a cutie pie in this condition, isn't it?" Bruce stood up and wrote a few quick notes. "Where is Sheriff Stewart?" He asked.
"Oh he went out of town for a few days. On a short vacation I reckon." Bruce turned around to face Richard. "Then who is in charge?"
Richard shrugged.
Bruce wrote a few more notes. "Get a hold of him anyway you can." He told Richard, while kneeling back down beside the girl. "Ah yeah sure... but why do you want him so badly anyhow...?"
"Because the murder victim in this case is Amy Stewart."
It took a while for Richard to put the two-and-two together. When he did his eyes widen. "I didn't even recogi-"
"Just get him on the phone!"
Richard looked stunned at the aggressive attitude Bruce was growing. But he did as he was told, and ran to his squad car. He ran past the rest of the investigation team, and medics who were making their way to the Amy's body.
"First off please tell me your name." Ross said to Nancy
"Nancy H. Grady."
"And where were you during the scene of the crime?"
"I was taking my usual cigarette break, in the back of the shop."
"How did you know the young girl was in trouble?"
"I heard her scream bloody murder!"
"What did you do when you heard the scream?"
"I almost choked on my dang cigarette first... Then I rushed around the corner... when I looked to my right... I saw them..."
"What exactly did you see?"
"That God-awful man was standing over her body, smiling like the devil. Bloody hand prints were on his shirt... and there was a knife in the poor girl's chest."
"And then what happened?"
"I remembered about David and Richard in the shop, and rushed to them."
"Is there anything else you would like to add Nancy?"
"Yes... please don't let that man get away!"
Ross closed his notebook and stood up from the table. "Thank you for your time." He tilted his hat in her direction and gave her a smile. She stuck her nose up in the air and looked out the window to her right. Ross turned around and walked out of the shop. He stood at the entrance for a brief moment, something didn't feel right to him. He looked over at the suspect in the back of the squad car in front of him. He walked toward the car, when he reached it he opened the back door. And kneel down at the door. He looked at Tom for a few moments before he politely asked him questions.
"What were your motives?"
Tom was silent.
"What is your name?"
Tom was silent again.
Ross was about to repeat himself when Tom finally spoke.
"I'm not the man you're looking for."
Ross tilted his head to the side.
"Then who is son? You're the only man the witness described."
Tom was silent again.
Ross gave up trying to get information out of him. He shut the door and wiped his forehead. It was too hot out to be wearing a suit, but Ross always had to look his best.
David was leaning up against the hood of the car, looking at Ross with a nasty expression.
"I want you to get this man proper health care.' Ross told David as he walked by him, heading toward the crime scene.
He stepped under the yellow Police - DO NOT CROSS tape and walked down the ally. There were small puddles of blood on the ground, more than fifteen feet away from the girl's body. Ross tilted his hat back and kneel down beside it. There was a little white object in the biggest puddle.
He didn't have any gloves on him, so he whistled to the nearest CSI man. The young blonde man rushed over to Wilkins. "Get me a pair of gloves, and a plastic bag." Wilkins demanded. The CSI man nodded and ran toward the CSI van.
He returned to Ross less than sixty seconds later with both requested items in hand. He handed them to Ross, and Ross slid the gloves on.
He picked up the white object and slid his sunglasses down to the end of his nose.
"Well I'll be damned!" He exclaimed. The CSI guy stood behind him and examined the white object.
"What is it hoss?" He asked Ross.
"It's a Goddamn tooth, that's what it is!" He smiled back at the CSI guy. "Open that bag up." The CSI guy opened the plastic bag, and Ross slid the tooth in. "Save that there tooth for the labs, while I see which one of them lost it."
The CSI guy nodded again and placed the bag tightly in his front jacket pocket.
Ross pushed himself up from the pavement, and continued walking toward the girl.
The coroner had just asked the paramedics to get their gurney, and body bag when Ross reached them.
He kneel down beside the coroner. "This may sound like a weird question for me to ask. But could you please expose the girl's teeth to me?" He asked Bruce.
Bruce didn't reply. He stuck his finger on the right side of the girl's mouth. All teeth were intact.
He gently tilted her head toward them, and exposed the left side of her mouth. All thirty-two teeth were intact.
"Do you know who she is?" Ross asked Bruce.
"Yeah.... it's the Sheriff's daughter."
Ross stood up. Down the ally way in front of him he could see two CSI members investigating a brown paper bag, and a pack of smokes. He assumed they belonged to the suspect.
What were his motives? He asked himself over and over again, but couldn't answer himself.
He turned back around and headed down the ally where he entered.
He stepped under the tape again, and almost ran into a cop who was running around the corner. Ross assumed it was Richard Dill.
"I got him! I got him!" He kept shouting over, and over again.
Ross watched as he ran down the ally to Bruce. After saying a few things to the coroner, the two of them started to jog in Ross' direction.
Ross quickly turned around and walked toward the squad car again. The suspect was sitting on the hood of the car now, with a paramedic standing in front of him.
"Now I want you to try and relax, as I examined you." The medic said to Tom as he unbuttoned his bloody plaid shirt.
Ross saw many bruises growing dark on his ribcage and chest. The medic placed a stethoscope on Tom's chest.
After listening for a few seconds he slid it down to Tom's left ribcage.
After listening to that for a few seconds he took off the stethoscope and felt his ribcage. That made Tom breath harder, and whined softly in pain.
"It feels as if a few of your ribs have been broken..." The medic said.
Ross couldn't imagine the pain Tom was in at the moment.
"It'll take at least 6-8 weeks for them to fully recover." The medic continued.
The medic noticed Ross standing behind him. "Could you please help me carry this man to the ambulance. I feel it would be best to treat him at the Coastal State Prison treatment center."
Ross nodded. He carefully took Tom's right arm and placed it around his own neck, as the medic did with Tom's left arm.
Together they guided him to the ambulance.
Tom's trial will begin shortly after he is healed, and transfered to his own cell.
